Court Rulings
Snow Removal Contractor Found Not To Have Violated Contract For Failure To Add Owner Of Property To Its Liability Policy
The plaintiff, Donna Michel was walking across the parking lot of the Wayne Towne Center when she was struck by a car operated by Sharon Langel. At the time of the accident, piles of snow on medians at the end of the rows of the parking spaces in the parking lot allegedly impeded Langel’s visibility […]
Questions Of Proper Speed And Control Of A Vehicle Found To Be Question Of Fact In Auto Accident Case, Precluding Order For Summary Judgment
The plaintiff Alma Miley was involved in an automobile accident with the defendant Andrew Friel. It occurred at an intersection in which plaintiff’s direction of travel was controlled by a stop sign but defendant’s direction of travel was not. The issue in Miley v. Friel, 2020 N.J. Super. Unpub. LEXIS 57 (App. Div. January 9, […]
Court Applies Mode of Operation Rule to Injury in Supermarket Caused by Water on Floor Due to Melted Snow from Shopping Cart
Plaintiff Mindy Klarman was at Pathmark’s Lake Hopatcong supermarket on January 31, 2011 when she fell. She slipped on a puddle of water near the checkout, which came from snow off of the bottom of shopping carts, which had been brought into the store. In Klarman v. Pathmark Supermarket, 2018 N.J. Super. Unpub. LEXIS 2808 […]
Appellate Division Approves Suit By Comp Carrier Against Third Party Tortfeasor Even Where Injured Worker Had A Verbal Threshold Policy
Automobile insurance carriers should expect an uptick in workers’ compensation carrier subrogation claims for medical expenses and temporary disability benefits, regardless of whether the injured worker was subject to the verbal threshold in his/her personal automobile policy based upon the recent published Appellate Division decision in New Jersey Transit Corporation v. Sandra Sanchez, A-0761-17T3 (App. […]
Appellate Division Reverses Order Denying Motion to Dismiss NJCRA Claims against New Jersey DEP Employees on the Basis of Qualified Immunity
By: Benjamin H. Zieman, Esq. Edited by: Betsy G. Ramos, Esq. In the recent precedential opinion of Radiation Data, Inc. v. N.J. Dep’t of Envtl. Prot., 2018 N.J. Super. LEXIS 149 (App. Div. Nov. 2, 2018), the Appellate Division highlighted the importance of resolving a public employee’s assertion of qualified immunity on a motion to […]
Court Finds Insurance Company Properly Cancelled Policy of Insurance for Non-Payment of Premiums
Selective Insurance Company (“Selective”) was sued by the plaintiffs Car Craft Auto Corp. and the Estate of Jesus Santiago t/a Car Craft Auto due to Selective’s cancellation of Jesus Santiago’s (“Santiago”) commercial insurance policy. Santiago had been insured from February 19, 2011 through February 19, 2012. Selective prepared and sent to Santiago an invoice for […]
Court Refuses to Apply Relation Back Rule to Permit Amended Pleading Filed Beyond Statute of Limitations
Plaintiff Michael Martin was employed by Gary F. Gardner, Inc. to perform inspections and correct punch list items at an assisted living facility that was under construction. He filed suit against Gary F. Gardner and “John Doe’s (1-4)” just prior to the expiration of the statute of limitations. In Martin v. Conifer-LeChase Construction, LLC, 2017 […]
Wear and Tear Homeowner’s Policy Exclusion Upheld by Court to Bar Property Damage Claim to Pool
Plaintiffs Richard and Vicki Klein filed a claim with Defendant Franklin Mutual Insurance Co. (“FMI”) due to damage to their in-ground pool. Plaintiffs claimed that the damage was caused by a rotted tree branch from a neighbor’s property which fell into their pool. The defendant disputed the cause of the damage, contending that it was […]
Tenant’s Personal Injury Claim against Property Manager Dismissed
Plaintiff Diedre Bradley resided in an apartment building in East Orange that was managed by Defendant Dynamic Capital Property (“Dynamic”). On January 16, 2012, Plaintiff suffered an injury when she tripped and fell due to a crack on the marble stairs in the common area of the building. In Bradley v. Dynamic Capital Property, 2017 […]
Failure to File Timely Tort Claims Act Notice Should Not Bar Suit Against Municipality for Injuries Due to Chemical Vapors Based Upon Discovery Rule
Plaintiffs Edan and Edna Ben Elazar alleged that they suffered various personal injuries due to chemical vapors that infiltrated their electronics repair shop. The chemicals emanated from leaking underground storage tanks that belonged to the dry cleaner next door to the plaintiff’s shop but were buried in adjoining municipal property with the Township’s permission. In […]
Betsy G. Ramos
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